Currently in the design of communication networks, service oriented systems, and in systems with different inter-network and intra-network protocols, there is no easy method to ensure that the intent of a requirement is satisfied by a system attribute, nor is there any methodology or process which captures and represents within the implemented systems or networks themselves these relationships between requirements and capabilities. For example there are different applications and media with their own quality of service (QOS) requirements, which do not have their translations into network services with their QOS characteristics represented in the design models or the implemented systems themselves. As a consequence, there is a potential for mismatch between network QOS capabilities and the need for QOS at the application level when considering new network services or new applications, and especially in dynamic situations where the choices of network services with QOS to support an application changes with the characteristics of an ad hoc network or other restrictive network states.
Evaluating one or more systems to determine whether the system capabilities can satisfy a set of requirements is very difficult and the knowledge of this evaluation is typically lost or not easily accessible after the design process. Likewise, comparing systems to determine which is best suited to satisfy a set requirements in a consistent manner can also be very difficult without some form of common model representing the requirements and the analyzed system capabilities. Lacking the ability to evaluate system capabilities in a consistent manner relative to sets of requirements, much work is typically required to select the best system to use.